Stocks Hold Slim Gains; Celgene, Salix Rally

The major stock indexes continued to trade modestly higher late Friday and were on pace to end the week with gains of more than 1%.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.2%. The broader Nasdaq and the S&P 500 edged up 0.1% each. Amid quadruple witching, volume continued to track sharply higher across the board in the stock market today.

IBD 50 member KapStone Paper and Packaging (NYSE:KS) pushed its gain to 5%. Earlier, the stock cleared a 32.02 buy point from a cup-with-handle base in hefty trade. In the past three quarters, the paper products producer's earnings surged 71% to 221%. Sales climbed 72% to 87% over the same period. Buyouts have helped boost results.

Salix Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SLXP), another IBD 50 member, rallied 3% to an all-time high in fast trade. The stock is now 3% past a 118.10 buy point from a late-stage base. The drugmaker was recently featured in the IBD Stock Spotlight.

Celgene (NASDAQ:CELG) rose 2% after shaking off early weakness. The biotech blew past a 163.60 buy point from a cup-with-handle base Thursday in heavy trade. Shareholders approved a 2-for-1 split Thursday. The new shares will be distributed June 25.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) was off its session low but still down 4% in heavy trading. Shares of the database software firm were off by as much as 6% following disappointing Q4 results from late Thursday. Citigroup downgraded Oracle to neutral from buy earlier Friday.

The major stock indexes continued to trade modestly higher late Friday and were on pace to end the week with gains of more than 1%.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.2%. The broader Nasdaq and the S&P 500 edged up 0.1% each. Amid quadruple witching, volume continued to track sharply higher across the board in the stock market today.

IBD 50 member KapStone Paper and Packaging (NYSE:KS) pushed its gain to 5%. Earlier, the stock cleared a 32.02 buy point from a cup-with-handle base in hefty trade. In the past three quarters, the paper products producer's earnings surged 71% to 221%. Sales climbed 72% to 87% over the same period. Buyouts have helped boost results.

Salix Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SLXP), another IBD 50 member, rallied 3% to an all-time high in fast trade. The stock is now 3% past a 118.10 buy point from a late-stage base. The drugmaker was recently featured in the IBD Stock Spotlight.

Celgene (NASDAQ:CELG) rose 2% after shaking off early weakness. The biotech blew past a 163.60 buy point from a cup-with-handle base Thursday in heavy trade. Shareholders approved a 2-for-1 split Thursday. The new shares will be distributed June 25.

Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) was off its session low but still down 4% in heavy trading. Shares of the database software firm were off by as much as 6% following disappointing Q4 results from late Thursday. Citigroup downgraded Oracle to neutral from buy earlier Friday.

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03/02/2015 06:45 PM ET

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